The Real Danger of the Pharisees
In John 9:34 the Jewish leaders could not get the man Jesus had healed to condemn Jesus as a sinner. In fact he had chided them as they had tried to condemn the Lord. As a result of their inability to get this man to respond as they wanted they said, “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” This was a similar attitude to what had been expressed by the Pharisee who had thanked God he wasn’t like the sinner.
I fear we miss the real dangers posed by the Pharisees. A major problem with the Pharisees was the fact that they had stopped seeking the truth of God. The Pharisees believed that they were the only ones who understood Truth. Instead of continuing to seek God, they had started to defend their developed doctrine.
A case in point develops around God’s law concerning the Sabbath. The Pharisees had taken God’s law concerning the Sabbath and had developed their own views concerning what could and could not be done. As a result their personal views became the standard rather than God’s law.
When they stopped seeking God they began to seek ways to uphold their opinions since their doctrine had become the standard. If anyone came in with a view that did not match the official view held by the Pharisees, that individual was wrong. They soon would be shunned. This proved true even if the view being taught belonged to Jesus Himself!
The Pharisees had made it their intention to restore Judaism back to the primitive form as in Moses day. In their mind they had restored Moses law. In reality they had made several major mistakes. Their initial mistake was very basic. There had been no mandate from God for them to restore anything. Their attempt to restore Moses law back to its primitive form was never what God had wanted. In man’s mind restoration seems to be a good thing. What could possibly be wrong with walking in the old paths?
Truthfully God has never asked for legalistic restoration of patternism. God’s desire has always been for the heart of man. The Pharisees grossly missed God’s intent. Instead of giving their heart to God, they prided themselves in getting all the facts right. In their pride they established their legalistic values as the standard. The Pharisees probably knew more facts about Moses law than any group on the face of the earth at that time. In all their legalism and patternistic knowledge they missed Jesus. Why we might ask? Quite simply because they thought they had fulfilled the restoration of Moses law. This became their defining characteristic. As a result they stopped seeking God. Their view of their ”restored law” became the standard rather than God’s Word being the standard.
When man’s doctrinal restoration of God’s Word becomes more important than God’s Word we are one step away from where the Pharisees were. May we always be seekers of God rather than defenders of patterns and doctrines. May our defining characteristic be, “We are seekers of God!”
I fear we miss the real dangers posed by the Pharisees. A major problem with the Pharisees was the fact that they had stopped seeking the truth of God. The Pharisees believed that they were the only ones who understood Truth. Instead of continuing to seek God, they had started to defend their developed doctrine.
A case in point develops around God’s law concerning the Sabbath. The Pharisees had taken God’s law concerning the Sabbath and had developed their own views concerning what could and could not be done. As a result their personal views became the standard rather than God’s law.
When they stopped seeking God they began to seek ways to uphold their opinions since their doctrine had become the standard. If anyone came in with a view that did not match the official view held by the Pharisees, that individual was wrong. They soon would be shunned. This proved true even if the view being taught belonged to Jesus Himself!
The Pharisees had made it their intention to restore Judaism back to the primitive form as in Moses day. In their mind they had restored Moses law. In reality they had made several major mistakes. Their initial mistake was very basic. There had been no mandate from God for them to restore anything. Their attempt to restore Moses law back to its primitive form was never what God had wanted. In man’s mind restoration seems to be a good thing. What could possibly be wrong with walking in the old paths?
Truthfully God has never asked for legalistic restoration of patternism. God’s desire has always been for the heart of man. The Pharisees grossly missed God’s intent. Instead of giving their heart to God, they prided themselves in getting all the facts right. In their pride they established their legalistic values as the standard. The Pharisees probably knew more facts about Moses law than any group on the face of the earth at that time. In all their legalism and patternistic knowledge they missed Jesus. Why we might ask? Quite simply because they thought they had fulfilled the restoration of Moses law. This became their defining characteristic. As a result they stopped seeking God. Their view of their ”restored law” became the standard rather than God’s Word being the standard.
When man’s doctrinal restoration of God’s Word becomes more important than God’s Word we are one step away from where the Pharisees were. May we always be seekers of God rather than defenders of patterns and doctrines. May our defining characteristic be, “We are seekers of God!”
